State of Grace
by preachersgal
Summary: ATF AU Ominous events unfold when Chris Larabee's sister-in-law, Grace Connelly, comes to Denver for a long-overdue visit.
1. Chapter 1

_**State of Grace**_

_**ATF AU**_

_**Part 1**_

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Most of Team Seven sat in the area commonly called the "bull pen" working on various reports and research for their caseloads. The majority of it was 'catch-up' work. Old reports that should have been filed weeks ago with A.D. Orin Travis but due to some emergency situations coming up they had never quite gotten finished. Now that things had slowed to a reasonable pace, Travis wanted the paperwork caught up.

When Buck's phone started to ring, the ladies man seriously debated not answering it. He was making headway and didn't want to be distracted.

Finally, he sighed and picked up the receiver, "Wilmington."

"My – is that any way to answer the phone, Bucklin?" Came a soft, almost lyrical feminine voice.

Buck froze for a moment, a quick flashback of memory coming to him. But he shook it off and asked, cautiously, "Grace? Is that you, darlin'?"

"It's me. How are you doing, honey?" She asked.

"I'm doing great. How are you? Where are you? What's going on?" Buck grinned.

Grace laughed, "I'm doing well, Buck. I was trying to get hold of Chris but I understand he's in a meeting. I'm in New York, but I'm coming to Denver and wanted to see you two old cowboys."

It was Buck's turn to laugh, "That would be terrific, Gracie. When will you be here?"

"Tomorrow, my flight gets in around two. I'm staying at the Hotel Monaco."

"Snazzy. How long will you be in town?" Buck asked.

"Could be a while. I'm doing research for a new book," she said.

"Need a ride from the airport?" Buck asked.

"Oh don't bother. I'm renting a car anyway. But let's have dinner," she said.

"That sounds good."

"Take this down, it's my cell phone number. 212-555-5269. Will you let Chris know I'm coming?" She asked.

"Sure will."

"Okay. Just let me know when you want to get together," Grace said.

"Have a safe flight, Gracie. See you tomorrow, darlin'."

"Can't wait to see you, handsome. Bye!"

Buck hung up the phone and met JD's eyes across the double desk that they shared.

"Should I even ask?" JD queried.

Buck laughed, "Not a conquest – not this time. Chris' sister-in-law, Grace, is coming to town. Where the hell is Chris anyway?"

"Still up in Travis' office," Josiah said.

"I didn't know Chris had a sister-in-law," Nathan said with a glance to Buck.

"Yeah, Gracie is Sarah's little sister. She's a writer – been living back east," Buck said.

"A writer?" Ezra asked. "I wasn't aware there was artistic talent in the Larabee family."

"Well, she's a Connelly, Ez, not a Larabee," Buck said.

"That would explain things," Ezra muttered, returning to his paperwork.

Vin looked up, "Cowboy's back."

All heads in the bull pen turned and saw Chris head wordlessly into his office, shutting the door behind him.

"I better go tell him the good news," Buck said heading for Chris' office.

Buck knocked on Chris' door even as he opened it.

"Can't you at least wait until I say 'come in', Buck?" Chris growled.

"This can't wait, stud," Buck grinned, bounding over to Chris' desk.

"What?"

"Guess who just called yours truly," Buck said.

"Buck, I'm not in the mood," Larabee spat, shifting through the paperwork on his desk.

"Grace."

Chris froze and looked up at Buck.

"Yeah, she's coming to Denver. Will be here tomorrow," Buck said.

"How long has it been, Buck?" Chris asked, his voice subdued.

"Five years. She hasn't been here since--" Buck stopped and looked a bit uncomfortable.

"Since the funerals," Chris finished.

"Yeah," Buck said seeming to collect himself. "She said she's going to be here a while. Doing research on a book or some such thing."

"Her last book went to the best sellers list," Chris said.

"You read it?" Buck looked incredulous.

"Of course I read it. She's my sister-in-law for crying out loud."

"Didn't think it would be your--" Buck paused.

"My what?"

"Your cup of tea, ya know," Buck finished.

"There's a lot you don't know about me, Buck," Chris said.

"After 12 years? I doubt it! Anyway, she gets in around two tomorrow. She's staying at the Hotel Monaco and wants to get together with us for dinner," Buck said. He stuck a post-it note on Chris' desk. "That's her cell phone number. One of us needs to give her a call about dinner."

"I'll take care of it. Anything else?" Chris asked.

"Nope."

"Then get back to work. I'll let you know about dinner," Chris said, turning back to his paperwork.

Buck stood for a moment, then shrugged and turned to leave.

"And shut the door behind you," Chris called.

As soon as Buck was gone, Chris picked up the post-it note. He stared at it for a moment then picked up the phone and dialed Grace's number.

"Hello."

For a moment, Chris couldn't respond. The voice….her voice….it was so much like Sarah's.

"Hello? Is someone there?" A tinge of impatience this time.

"Grace? It's Chris."

"Chris. Oh my gosh! How are you?" Grace asked.

"I'm okay. How are you?" Chris asked.

"Doing well," she said.

"So I've heard. Buck just told me you're coming to town," he said.

"Yes. I'm doing research for a new book."

"How long will you be staying?" He asked.

"Not sure. It could be a while. I'll stay till I have all the research I need. Did Buck tell you I wanted to get together for dinner?" She asked.

"Yeah. Tomorrow night. Is that all right?"

"Absolutely."

"I'll make reservations. We'll pick you up at your hotel. Six o'clock okay?"

"Perfect."

"Grace, why don't you come and stay at the ranch while you're here?" He asked.

"Ah – well, gee Chris that's really nice of you but I don't want to put you out. Besides, I have a suite all reserved and I may need to conduct interviews and--"

"Well, how about coming out for a weekend then? We can go riding," he said.

"I'd love that, Chris. Hey, I've got to run – my other phone is ringing. I'll see you tomorrow, okay?" She asked.

"Yeah – have a safe trip. Bye, Grace," he said.

"Bye, Chris."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Grace looked around the hotel suite after the bell hop had helped her bring her belongings to the room. Two suitcases, a garment bag, a laptop case, toiletry case and purse. Hopefully she'd brought enough to last for a good while.

The suite was nice. Roomy. She liked that the bedroom was separate from the living room. Made it feel more like an apartment than a hotel. There was even a little utility kitchen off the living room.

She approached the large sliding glass window that led to a small balcony. Opening the window and stepping out onto the balcony Grace took a look at the view of downtown Denver.

She sighed thinking of the last time she'd seen this view. Had it really been five years since she'd been back? That horrible year – three family members dead and buried. It had been too much; she'd practically run back to college. Then when she graduated shortly thereafter, she wanted to stay as far away from Denver as she could. She brushed the tears that threatened away and went back inside.

She started to carry her bags to the bedroom. She'd need to unpack and then decide what to wear for dinner tonight. She had just less than two hours before Chris and Buck would show up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chris drove his new Dodge Ram 2500. It was almost an exact duplicate of his previous truck, even down to the color – black, of course. Between the ranch and work as an ATF agent, he rarely had a truck that lasted more than 5 years, give or take, due to the wear and tear he put on them. He'd only had the new truck about a month now and he wondered how long this vehicle would last him.

Buck sat beside Chris, riding shotgun. The pair had left directly from the ATF office and was headed for the Denver Monaco Hotel where Grace was staying.

"Did you talk to Grace at all today?" Chris asked.

"Nope. Was I supposed to?" Buck asked.

"Nah, I just wondered," Larabee shrugged.

"Where are we going for dinner, stud?" Buck asked.

"Rock Bottom Brewery," Chris replied.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Grace took a good long look at herself in the mirror. She wore her long, dark auburn hair down. She brushed it back over her shoulders as she put her pierced earrings into her earlobes. Then she ran her hands down over the royal blue dress, smoothing it out slightly. Her own blue eyes stared back at her and she stuck her tongue out at herself.

"You're just being silly, Grace," she said to no one.

She stepped into black high heels and grabbed a small black handbag.

Looking at the clock on her nightstand, she saw it was just a few minutes before six. She stuck her hotel room key in her purse and left her room, headed for the lobby.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Glancing around the lobby as they entered the hotel, Chris and Buck did not see Grace sitting on a couch by the front desk. But she saw them. Silently for a moment, she watched them. Just enjoying the sight of the two men making their way across the lobby. Buck spotted her first, which was not a surprise. Grace smiled and rose to her feet.

Buck put his fist to his heart like he'd been shot. "Gracie, oh my god – what happened to that little gal that was off at college?" Buck asked, joyously, leaning down to give her a kiss on the cheek and pull her into a bear hug.

"You're still a tease, Buck," Grace said, hugging him back.

"And you're all grown up!" He held her at arm's length for a moment before stepping to one side.

Grace laughed, "Well, I hope so, Buck. I'm an old lady – almost 27 now!" She turned to look at Chris and had to fight control her facial expression at the sight of him. Back when she was in high school she'd had a school-girl crush on her sister's husband something she thought time would eliminate; but it unsettled her to see Chris again and she found her heart pounding against her rib cage.

For Chris, the sight of Grace almost threw him. It was only his law enforcement background that allowed him to keep his expression neutral. It wasn't Sarah's face that looked up at him but there were flashes of similarities that he'd forgotten or maybe had never noticed before. After all, Grace hadn't been much more than a kid the last time he saw her.

Chris smiled at her, "Grace, it's good to see you." He stepped close to her for a hug.

Grace hugged Chris back and he felt the slight tremor that ran through her body – or did he imagine it?

"I'm glad to see you too, Chris," she said, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek.

Grace stepped back and seemed to collect herself. She linked arms with both men and said, "So, where are we going tonight?"

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

At Chris' truck, Grace smirked.

"Oh, shoot. I forgot that you like these 'monster trucks', Chris. Anyone bring a step ladder by chance?" She said.

Buck laughed as he opened the door for her, "Come on, Gracie, I'll give you a boost."

Buck stood behind Grace and took hold of her waist, lifting her easily onto the running board.

"I should have worn my hiking boots," she said, looking at Chris while she took a seat.

"Hey, scoot over, hog," Buck teased.

Grace slid over to the middle of the bench seat and Buck climbed into the truck beside her.

"Seat belts," Chris said as he started up the engine.

"Yes, daddy," Grace muttered as she and Buck buckled up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Grace enjoyed dinner tremendously. Chris had seemed a trifle tense to her but two beers loosened him up. That and listening to Buck tell tales of Team Seven.

"They sound like quite a crew," Grace said. "When do I get to meet them?"

"I'm sure we can arrange something, Gracie. What is it, more research?" Buck laughed.

"Hey, you never know when that's going to come in handy. Someday I may want to write a book about federal agents," she replied.

Buck stuck his lower lip out, "Not about me?"

"Oh Buck, what would I write about with you? How to pick up women?" Grace laughed as though something struck her extremely funny. "I have the title even – 'Wining and Dining Them – The Wilmington Way.'"

Chris laughed with them. "So what is the new book about, Grace?"

"Oh now Chris, a writer never talks about her work until it's published," she teased. "But I can tell you it's another mystery."

Chris nodded, "I read 'Mark of Evil'."

"You're kidding," she said, looking stunned. "Somehow I didn't think that would interest you."

"Well, you did send me a copy," Chris grinned, "Of course I read it."

"And?" She asked.

"I liked it. The ending surprised me. I didn't expect that the fiancé would have been the murderer."

Grace grinned back at him, "It was fun to write that one. Spent a lot of sleepless nights because I just got so involved in the story. I didn't want to stop writing anytime I got going."

"I like the tall guy with the mustache myself," Buck added.

Chris and Grace cracked up.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Driving back to Grace's hotel later, Chris asked, "So what do you have planned for the upcoming weekend?"

"Well, I'm supposed to have a book signing Saturday morning. Should take a few hours. But the rest of the weekend is wide open," Grace said.

"Want to come out to the ranch afterwards? We can go riding and barbeque," Chris said.

"That would be fun," Grace smiled.

"How about you, Buck?" Chris asked.

"Got a date, stud," Buck said, giving Grace a wink.

"Oh surprise, surprise," Grace joked.

Chris pulled up in front of the hotel and Buck opened the passenger door and stepped out.

"Thanks for dinner, Chris," Grace said.

"Sure. Do you want me to pick you up on Saturday?"

"Oh no, I can drive out. I'll come as soon as I can escape the book signing," she said.

"Sounds good," he replied. He suddenly leaned close to her and kissed her cheek. "Good night, Grace."

"Good night, Chris," she said quietly. Grace slid across the seat and Buck helped her step down.

Buck practically picked Grace up to hug her good-bye.

"See ya, squirt," he said.

"Later, stretch," she replied as they both laughed.

Buck climbed back up into the truck and watched the doorman hold the door open for Grace. She turned in the lobby and waved to them as they drove off.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Saturday morning, Grace was up early. She was still on New York time. She ordered in a room service breakfast. She enjoyed being able to eat a leisurely meal. She scanned the morning paper and enjoyed her coffee.

After she showered and dressed, she prepared a small overnight bag. Chris had called her the previous evening and suggested she just stay over at the ranch. She accepted his offer happy to have a chance to get away from town and spend some quiet time with Chris.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

The book signing was at a large store in a Denver mall. Her publicist had set it up after Grace had made plans to go to Denver. He'd thought it would be a good marketing ploy. Sort of a 'home town girl makes good.'

Grace was happy to see some familiar faces in the crowd. Some of her old high school chums had turned out to welcome her home.

About two hours after the book signing had gotten underway, a tall, dark haired man leaned over Grace with a copy of her book 'Mark of Evil' in his hands.

"Hi," Grace said, smiling up at him. "Who should this be made out to?"

The man smiled, "That would be me, Miss Connelly. I'm one of your biggest fans."

"Oh well, thank you. What's your name?" She asked.

"Fowler. Cletus Fowler," he grinned.


	2. Chapter 2

_**State of Grace**_

_**ATF/AU**_

_**Part 2**_

*Author's Warning: This post contains a scene of drug use.*

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Driving out to Chris' ranch brought back a lot of memories for Grace. Seeing the ranch house off in the distance reminded her of happier times. She hadn't been to the ranch since before Sarah's death.

Grace pulled her rental car up in front of the house and got out of the car. For just a moment, she looked at the house. It looked exactly the same. The trees had grown larger, but other than that there were no other obvious alterations.

She reached back into her car and grabbed her overnight bag and purse. She was still in the pantsuit she's worn to the book signing. She approached the front door and rang the bell.

The windows were open and she heard Chris call, "Just a minute."

After a few moments the door opened to Chris' smiling face. "Hi Grace," he said, reaching out to grab her overnight bag.

Grace returned his smile and stepped into the foyer. "Hi Chris." She looked around and let out a gasp.

Chris had moved past her to shut the front door, but he turned at hearing Grace's intake of breath.

"What is it?" He asked, concerned.

"The house," she said quietly. "Everything is exactly as it was the last time I was here." She blinked for a moment and glanced back at him, "I'm sorry. It just took me by surprise."

"Howdy."

Grace turned and looked at the man who'd appeared in the living room.

"Grace, this is Vin Tanner," Chris said, leading Grace into the room. "Vin, this is my sister-in-law, Grace Connelly."

Grace smiled and took Vin's outstretched hand, "Hi Vin. Nice to meet you."

"Pleasures mine," he grinned.

"Vin's an agent on Team Seven. He boards his horse, Peso, here," Chris said.

"Are you going to ride with us today, Vin?" Grace asked.

"I wouldn't want to intrude," Vin began.

"No intrusion, Vin. You're more than welcome," Chris said.

"Then I'll stick around," the sharpshooter said.

"I need to change," Grace said. "I haven't sat a horse in years, Chris. I hope I remember how."

Vin laughed, "It's like riding a bicycle. It'll come right back to ya."

"I hope you're right," Grace chuckled. "Be too embarrassing otherwise."

Both men laughed as Chris led Grace off to the guest room.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Grace enjoyed the horseback riding. The three rode far and wide, pretty much covering most of Chris' spread. Grace was reminded of how much she'd missed the open spaces since living in the city. Memories of happier times and a carefree youth rushed through her thoughts, filling her with melancholy.

By the time they returned to the ranch house, the sun was setting and everyone was hungry. Vin offered to take care of the horses so Chris could get the barbeque fired up. Grace offered to give Vin a hand in the barn.

The pair unsaddled the horses and began brushing them down.

As Grace stood in the stall brushing down the mare an image appeared in her mind's eye, one that was so clear it brought tears to her eyes. She couldn't help the sob that escaped her lips. Vin was suddenly beside her.

"Are you all right, Grace?" He asked.

She started and looked at him, the tears making their conquest and sliding down her cheeks. She brushed them away with the back of her hand.

"I'm sorry, Vin," she said, "just being here again – I'm remembering so many things."

Vin nodded sympathetically, "Chris – he don't talk about it much."

Grace took in a deep breath and let it out, "Everything here looks the same. I keep expecting to see Sarah and Adam. I was away at college when they were killed. A bomb had been planted in Chris' car and Sarah's had to go to the mechanics for some reason. Chris offered to take Sarah's car into town – he was going to meet Buck at the mechanics and go into the precinct with him. Sarah had to take Adam to school and run errands that day. My father called to tell me about their deaths. It took me two days to get a flight home."

"That must have been so difficult," Vin said.

"It was. God, Vin, if I could have walked back, I would have. I couldn't get back fast enough. My father picked me up at the airport. He was so shaken. I'd never seen him so undone. He said my mother was in a bad way. She'd been suffering from depression and Sarah and Adam's deaths had really struck her hard. My mother hadn't come to the airport with him – she'd insisted on staying at the house. When we got home, I remember running in the door and calling for her. I just wanted to be held in my mother's arms," Grace continued. Another sob escaped her. "When I got up the stairs, she wasn't anywhere in sight. I thought maybe she was in the bedroom. I looked and didn't see her. Then I heard something in the bathroom. The bathroom door was closed over but not all the way. I called out to her and opened the door and--" Tears started to fall again. "She'd – hung herself from the shower rod."

Grace dropped the horse brush she'd held and leaned against the side of the stall. Vin swallowed hard and reached out to rub his hand across Grace's back, trying to be comforting.

"I'm so sorry, Grace," he said quietly.

Grace turned and sniffed, trying to pull herself together. She pulled a handkerchief from the pocket of her jeans, blew her nose and wiped at her eyes. She met Vin's gaze.

"After that – I just wanted to get away," she said softly. "I didn't want to be anywhere near Denver. This is the first time I've been back since – well since the funerals."

Vin nodded, "Yeah, I can understand that."

"Vin, please don't tell Chris I broke down like this. He really seems to have his life together and I don't want to bring back any bad memories for him. This is just something I have to work through. I didn't realize how much being back here was going to affect me."

Vin smiled, "I won't say anything." He gave her hand a quick squeeze. "Why don't you go up to the house and wash up for dinner? I'll finish with the horses."

Grace squeezed Vin's hand in return, "Thank you, Vin."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Cletus Fowler looked down from a hillside close to Chris' ranch. He leaned back against the fender of his dark blue Mercedes and took a long pull on his Burmese cheroot. He stood in the darkness and raised a pair of binoculars to his eyes, watching the three people having supper on the patio.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Chris awoke on Sunday morning to the smell of freshly brewed coffee. He took a deep breath and enjoyed the aroma that reached his nostrils. Getting up, he pulled on a pair of jeans and a t-shirt, ran his hands through his hair and headed out to the kitchen. He glanced in the open guest room door as he passed, but did not see Grace there.

A pot of coffee waited in the kitchen. He poured himself a large mug and took a sip, wondering where Grace was. He headed out to the patio.

Chris found Grace sitting in an Adirondack chair, wearing sweat pants and a large t-shirt, one leg tucked under her as she stared off into the distance. She glanced over at Chris when she heard the sliding glass door.

"'Morning," he said.

"Good morning, Chris," she replied.

"What're you doin' up so early?" He asked taking a seat beside her.

Grace smiled, "I'm still on east coast time. Came out to watch the sunrise."

Chris nodded, "Thanks for making the coffee."

"Sure. Least I could do," she replied. "Why don't you let me cook breakfast this morning?"

Chris grinned, "Get no argument from me. But no rush."

She nodded turning back to the view, "I'd almost forgotten how nice and peaceful it is here."

"Yeah, I like getting away from the city. It's a bit of a hike for work every day but well worth it," he said. "Would you like to go for another ride today?"

"I would. I had fun yesterday."

"Well, Vin was right. You sat that horse like a pro."

"Yeah, it did come back to me easily. He's a nice guy. I'm glad you have such good friends, Chris," she said.

"Tanner's one in a million," Chris nodded. "All the guys on Team Seven are characters but I wouldn't trade them for anything."

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Grace cooked up Denver omelets for breakfast. After she and Chris ate, they got dressed and readied the horses for a ride.

They rode all over Chris' spread. Seeing it once again brought back memories of happier times to Grace's mind.

Both she and Chris were fairly quiet on this outing but it wasn't an uncomfortable silence.

Finally, the horses tired and they decided to take a break from their ride. Stopping on a grassy knoll, near a small stream, they allowed the horses to drink and rest.

Grace had removed her hat and lay back on the grass looking up at the clouds. Chris took a seat beside her.

"I remember how Adam used to love to watch the cloud formations – to see what objects he could make out," Grace smiled.

Chris chuckled, "He had quite an active imagination. But I suppose that's a family trait."

"Well, I can't deny that I shared that with him," she said quietly. "I feel so close to them out here."

Chris nodded, "Yeah. I do too."

"Is that why you haven't made any changes?"

Chris looked down at Grace, "I don't know."

Grace looked up at him, "Chris, you know Sarah would not want you to live in the past. She'd want you to be happy and have a life."

"I could say the same for you," he replied.

"What does that mean?"

"Do you have a boyfriend, Grace?"

"No, but-" She paused.

"But – how often do you shut yourself away with your writing?" He asked.

Grace sighed, "You're right. I do tend to let that take up my time. I don't know – it just is so hard."

"It's hard to get close to anyone. Because you're afraid of losing them," he finished.

"Yeah," she whispered. She let out a breath and the corner of her mouth pulled up into a grin, "We're a fine pair, aren't we?"

"That we are," he said as he stood. He reached down to give her a hand up.

For a moment they just looked at each other. Chris gave her hand a squeeze and asked, "Ready to head back?"

"Yeah," she nodded. "I'll need to shower, pack and start thinking about getting back to town." They both mounted up.

Heading back toward the ranch house, Chris could not get an impulsive image out of his head. Standing by that stream with Grace, all he'd wanted to do was kiss her.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~

Cletus Fowler leaned over the coffee table, using a razor blade to cut the cocaine on a small mirror. He spread the cut cocaine into neat rows of lines. His hands shook with the effort. With a small plastic straw, he leaned closer and began to snort the lines of coke, wiping his nose when he was finished. Shakily, he pulled a black glove over his badly deformed right hand. He rested against the back of the couch and waiting for the pain-numbing drug to take effect.

TBC . . . . . .


End file.
